Butterfly: She Flies Alone
by irohsteashoppegirls
Summary: How Ty Lee joins the circus. Oneshot


Butterfly - She Flies Alone

By: Iroh's Tea Shoppe Girls

Disclaimer: We don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender. Or the circus Ty Lee worked for.

"For Agni's sake, stop that," the woman hissed. Her daughter went from being a cute, talented little doll to a rebellious, silly, monster when she became a teenager. She was quite at a loss for what to do with her.

Ty Lee just ignored her mother and continued to walk around on her hands. Her parents just didn't understand her. She figured it was fair enough, it's not like she understood them very well.

"You have to get dressed, we're meeting the son of a governor," Ty Lee's mother barked. The girl was three years away from being married, and didn't show any interest in it at all. That was what worried her the most.

"I don't want to go," Ty Lee said. "I've got a lot I want to do before I get married."

"Like 'join the circus'?" her mother asked in a frustrated tone. "Your father and I worked hard for our status, you should appreciate your position more. Working for the circus isn't all fun and games, it's hard physical labor, which your father has worked hard to ensure you'd never have to do."

Ty Lee rolled her eyes. It wasn't as if she had asked for any of it. She often thought of how she would have rather been born into a poor but supportive family. But it couldn't be helped.

"Please Ty Lee," the mother pleaded. "Do it for your father and me. If you don't like the boy, it's fine. We just want your happiness."

-.-.-.-

The boy had been polite, well-educated, ambitious, and cultured. Ty Lee was pretty sure that he had never done a day of physical labor in his life. He didn't have any interest in circuses either, which made him a complete bore in Ty Lee's opinion.

But one thing he had said did stick with her, it was some saying about how people shouldn't let anything stand in the way of achieving their goals. It was a message Ty Lee decided she should take to heart.

That night she decided that she shouldn't let her parents stand in the way of her dream to join the circus. She packed her bags, hid them in her room, and waited for her parents to fall asleep. It was around the middle of the night when she left. She left most of her nice clothing, all of her jewelry, and a note for her parents, asking them not to find her.

As she passed through the gates of the capital, Ty Lee felt a pressure lift off of her chest. She was finally free. She could finally pursue her dreams as she wished.

-.-.-.-

The circus wasn't exactly as she had envisioned it. The ringmaster was much less willing to hire her than she expected him to be. He wasn't that impressed with her gymnastic and contortionist skills, he'd seen better. Sure, she was young and cute, but there were many young and cute girls, some even younger and cuter.

"Do you like animals?" the ringmaster asked.

"I like the cute ones," Ty Lee said smiling. "Like cat-animals."

"Are you good with a whip?"

"Only if I can manage to not hurt myself with it.."

"Do you have any other talents?"

"I can peel a banana with my toes."

"That's not very helpful."

But at the end of the day, she was hired, and that was all that mattered. It didn't matter that a condition for her employment was that she perform one of the most dangerous stunts, she was just happy to have the job.

She would have a month to come up with and perfect her routine. If she failed to make the debut date, she'd be fined for all her expenses. Ty Lee was happy with the agreement; she knew she could do it no problem. It would be fun working in a circus.

The other performers didn't accept her right away; she had to work to get any respect. But she quickly earned it, as it would seem she was one happy girl whose mood no one could sour. She was careful to never tell anyone where she had come from, but that wasn't very hard as no one asked.

After the month had passed Ty Lee was more than ready for her debut. She wowed the audience with her breathtaking performance, her balancing prowess, holding herself up with one arm only, on top of a high tightrope wire. The audience gasped when Ty Lee switched which hand was holding herself up with. The ringmaster couldn't have been happier with the performance.

"So, do I get the job?" Ty Lee asked after the performance had ended.

"You sure do," The ringmaster said with a small smile. "I think you were born to work in the circus."

"I know!" Ty Lee agreed. "I mean, my aura's never been pinker!"


End file.
